Freeholder Board Approves Child Care Program for Working Families, Single Parents

The Union County Board of Chosen Freeholders authorized a pilot program serving those who don’t meet eligibility for State subsidized child care with affordable child care.

The program, in cooperation with Community Coordinated Child Care of Union County (CCCC), is scheduled to begin in June and conclude in December 2015. According to Union County, the program will help approximately 40 families with up to 25 percent of the cost of child care. The program is aimed at assisting low income working parents or those in school full-time who do not receive other child care subsidies to secure child care for children up to 12 years of age, or children with special needs up to the age of 18, according to officials from Union County.

“Obtaining quality, affordable Child care is a glass ceiling for many working class families and single parents,” Freeholder Chairman Jalloh said in a release from the county. “The benefits of child care are many, including better health, and better socialization and improved behavioral attributes. Children in childcare also tend to score slightly higher on measures of academic and cognitive achievement years later as in comparison to their peers without child care, according to long-running Federal studies.”

The pilot program will enable low income families, or those dealing with severe illness, homelessness or domestic violence crises to access child care for pre-school, before/after school and summer camp, county officials said. The CCCC will not directly administer child care, but will help parents and families obtain affordable child care.

For more information regarding the upcoming pilot program, contact the County of Union at 908-527-4000.